Tag: postgrad

What is the Aerospace and Defense Industry?

Professionals in the aerospace and defense industry might build aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft or weapons, or focus specifically on manufacturing the parts needed for each. They might also build information systems for processing and interpreting complex data. Typically, companies in this field manufacture their products for military, federal government or space programs. If you’re interested in pursuing a career path in the aerospace and defense industry, here’s what you need to know.

What roles exist within the aerospace and defense industry?

There are a range of positions within the aerospace and defense industry, many of them highly technical. If you’re interested in working in this field, you can look into positions including:

  • engineer
    • aerospace, electrical, mechanical, systems, quality assurance
  • flight inspector
  • aircraft electrician
  • … and more

What does someone in the aerospace and defense industry do?

Aerospace and defense industry professionals are responsible for a wide range of jobs, and your work will be critical, both for your own company and for the protection and defense of the people who use the vehicles and technology you help to build and maintain. For example, an electrical engineer might be responsible for designing and building electronics equipment for spacecraft, aircraft or helicopters. Meanwhile, aerospace engineers might work on military-grade vehicles and systems that can hold up during battle, whether by land, air or sea.

What is a typical salary for someone in the aerospace and defense industry?

Salaries in the aerospace and defense industry vary significantly, depending on your specific career path. Aerospace engineers and flight inspectors earn an average of $82,000, while quality assurance engineers and electrical engineers earn an average of $72,200 and $72,600 respectively. Meanwhile, aircraft electricians earn an average of $61,100, while physicists earn an average of $105,000.

How to Land a Job in Technology Sales

With its high rate of growth and reputation for innovation, the technology field has a lot to offer recent grads who are passionate about working with emerging technologies. One of these opportunities is technology sales, an area of the industry focused on connecting customers with great tech solutions. To learn more about technology sales and get some tips on how recent grads can get their foot in the door, we asked the team at Dell to tell us what they look for in an employee and what you can do to stand out from the crowd.

Here are the steps you need to take if you want to get a job in technology sales.

1. Learn as much as you can about the technology industry

The first step to landing a job in any industry is to be knowledgeable about that industry. If you want to work in the tech field, this means knowing what technologies are most relevant and what companies are key players in the space you want to work in. The best way to develop this knowledge is by reading as much as possible about the tech industry and getting a sense of current trends. Sites like TechCrunch and Forbes Tech offer a lot of great insights into all aspects of the field and can help you get informed about new and emerging technologies and market trends. Taking relevant classes during your time in college, particularly business and marketing classes, is another way to gain this knowledge since it will give you an understanding of how products are marketed and sold.

2. Develop your sales and communication skills

In addition to learning about the tech industry, another key step to getting hired is to develop your sales and communication skills. You can do this by becoming a campus rep or brand ambassador during your time in college. This will give you a chance to connect with other students on your campus, helping you grow your professional network, and it will also give you a sense of the best way to market products directly to consumers. An integral part of a technology sales job, these skills will come in handy as you’re establishing connections with new clients and helping them find the solutions that are right for them.

3. Intern with a technology company

Once you’ve learned all you can about the tech field and developed your core skills, it’s time to gain hands-on experience by interning with a tech company. Companies like Dell are a great place to work because they have a range of different internship and co-op opportunities that are designed to help you get on-the-job training while also preparing you for the next step in your career. The Dell University Relations program focuses on connecting undergrads with those opportunities and giving them the training they need to succeed. “There’s a big focus on development,” explains Marie Moynihan, Dell’s Vice President of Talent. “We place a lot of emphasis on feedback, coaching and individual development plans which create an environment of continuous learning.” With these initiatives in place, interns are able to make the most of the experience and often transition to full-time roles after graduation.

4. Know what recruiters look for

The final piece of the puzzle is knowing what recruiters look for. This is usually a mix of skills and industry knowledge along with a passion for the field. Being able to demonstrate that passion and being enthusiastic about the opportunity to learn more about the industry will go a long way toward impressing recruiters. Beyond that, it’s about demonstrating what you can bring to the table and how your unique skills and personality will make you an asset to the team.

By following these tips and developing your skills and experience, you’ll have no problem finding a technology sales opportunity that’s right for you.  

How an MBA Program Works

With the increased popularity of MBA programs in recent years, you might be wondering whether or not an MBA is right for you. Is an MBA likely to increase your career prospects and your earning potential? The answer is usually yes, although it does also depend on your industry.

Before you decide whether to apply, here are some of the key things you need to know about an MBA program.

What is an MBA program?

Also known as a Master’s of Business Administration Program, an MBA is a two-year graduate program designed to help professionals develop business management skills. Covering subjects such as finance, accounting, management and marketing, an MBA program gives you an opportunity to deepen your knowledge and skills for future professional growth.

What are the different types of MBA programs?

MBA programs typically have a lot of things in common. Focusing on the same subjects, they’re structured to provide a business management education while helping students develop their analytical and problem-solving skills. That said, not all programs are the same and picking a program often comes down to a student’s individual needs and goals. For example, for young professionals who already have a full-time job in addition to studying for their MBA, a part-time program might be a better fit. For those who want to focus on a specific industry, specialized MBA programs are also available in subjects such as marketing, healthcare or human resources. Many programs also help students find relevant internships or rotational programs, giving them the added on-the-job training they need to advance to the top of their industries.

How much does an MBA program cost?

The cost of an MBA program varies depending on the school and the type of program. For example, online MBA programs are typically less expensive than traditional programs, ranging between $10,000-$90,000. Traditional MBA programs often cost upwards of $100,000 with most ranging between $120,000-170,000. So what’s the upside of a traditional MBA? Recognition. Traditional MBA programs are more highly regarded by employers and can make it easier to get to the next step in your career.

How can an MBA program help you succeed in your career?

Due to the high level of skill and knowledge MBA graduates develop during their programs, they are often among the most sought after candidates in any field. These skills allow them to take leadership roles in almost any organization, successfully leading teams and creating processes that help organizations run smoothly. These position also come along with another bonus — a much higher salary. In fact, MBA graduates typically earn $45,000 more per year than their colleagues without MBAs.

A great way to develop new skills and expand your career options, an MBA program can help you make big leaps in your career. By knowing what to expect and what factors to consider, you’ll be able to decide if an MBA program is right for you.

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as How to Set Career Goals (and Meet Them) and find answers to common interview questions such as What’s Your Dream Job?

Top 5 Tools for Digital Marketing

When it comes to digital marketing, few things are as important as the tools digital marketers rely on to get their jobs done. These include everything from social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to analytics tools like Google Analytics. Allowing marketers to create, test and measure the performance of their campaigns, digital marketing tools ensure that marketers can launch and test campaigns quickly and effectively.

Here are the five common digital marketing tools.

1. Social media platforms

A common part of any integrated marketing strategy, social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are a great way for marketers to engage with their audiences and generate buzz around their brand. In addition to the standard features these platforms offer, there are also some features that are designed specifically for marketing. These include Facebook Ads Manager, which allows marketers to run ads and track ad performance. As an added bonus, social media management tools like Buffer and Hootsuite also integrate well with these platforms, making it easy to schedule social posts and measure engagement.

2. Design tools

Another key part of digital marketing is design and this is especially common when it comes to creating ads and content like social media posts and blog posts. Because digital marketing is such a design heavy field, doing it effectively wouldn’t be possible without design tools like Canva and Photoshop, programs that allow those without extensive graphic design skills to add dynamic images to their content.

3. Analytics tools

Another set of helpful tools for digital marketers are analytics tools. These include everything from Google Analytics (designed to track stats for web traffic to a particular site) to social media analytics tools like Facebook Insights and Twitter Analytics which provide metrics related to engagement and help marketers optimize their campaigns. For measuring stats on the backend of a site (particularly related to conversions, sales and user demographics), there are also tools like Periscope that track user data, site searches and conversion metrics.

4. Content marketing tools

For marketers who are more focused on content marketing, tools like CoSchedule and Hubspot are a big help when it comes to content creation and curation. They can help marketers identify content opportunities and craft engaging blog and social media posts that will resonate with their audience. And since Buffer also offers the ability to see what fans are talking about on social media, that content is almost guaranteed to be impactful and to generate attention for a specific event or news story.

5. Email marketing tools

The final set of tools in a digital marketer’s toolbox are email marketing marketing tools. These help marketers create email campaigns that amplify their content and encourage their users to become more engaged with their brand — taking additional steps like signing up for events and buying products. Common email marketing tools include email marketing platforms like MailChimp and Iterable which allow marketers to build email lists and automate their email campaigns. These platforms also provide analytics for every email campaign, making testing and optimization quick and easy.

Working in digital marketing involves a unique blend of passion, strategy and media savvy. In order to maximize the impact of your various campaigns, it helps to have the best tools at your disposal.

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as Career Opportunities for Marketing Majors and find answers to common interview questions such as What Other Companies Are You Interviewing With?

Top 20 Entry-Level Job Interview Questions and Answers

Congratulations on getting an interview, it’s no minor feat! It’s important to remember that the employer will be far less forgiving in an entry-level job interview than in an internship interview. Hiring a full-time employee is much riskier than hiring an intern for the summer. So come well rested, prepared, and as relaxed as you possibly can.

We’ve compiled a list of the top 20 entry-level interview questions and answers to help you prepare to land your first job after. They fall into the following categories:

Pro Tip: visit this page on your phone to turn these questions into flash cards for practicing!

Select a topic to navigate to related interview questions and view their answers.

The Core 5 Interview Questions

You’re guaranteed to get asked these questions.

1. Tell me about yourself.

This question is often used to break the ice and see how personable you can be. Be careful not to drone on endlessly for this question. It’s easy to get caught up in your back story and lose track of time. A safe answer is to give a brief overview that covers where you grew up, where you went to school, why you chose your major, any internship experience you have, and why you’re applying for this job.

2. What are your strengths? Your weaknesses?

To answer this question you need to do some introspection. Ask your friends, family, and any previous coworkers what they how they view your strengths and weaknesses. Prepare to discuss at least 3 strengths and 3 weaknesses. Stay away from clichés like “perfectionist” and “workaholic” as they can be interpreted as weaknesses. Own up to your faults. Everyone has them. Just be honest and open to improving yourself.

3. Give me an example or a situation in which…

These questions are not only used to determine what you learned from a particular experience, but also to assess how you would respond to potential workplace scenarios and situations. Prepare to talk about 3 scenarios in which you faced conflict or difficulty in either work or school, had difficulty with either a supervisor or peer, and a leadership opportunity or a project you are particularly proud of.

4. Tell me about this (class / internship) I see on your resume?

The good news here is that nobody knows and understands your experiences better than you, so you should be confident for this question. This is a great opportunity for you to sell yourself. A good framework for your answers is to explain the goals for any class or internship, cover your personal responsibilities in any projects, and discuss the outcomes. Again, avoid droning on for too long about any particular experience and wrap things up concisely.

5. What are your longer-term career goals (or where do you see yourself in 5 or 10 years)?

There is no “right answer” to this question and it’s certainly ok to say that you don’t have any. However, be prepared to explain why you don’t have any. One solid strategy is to downplay your career goals and aspirations (you are young after all) and play up your interest in the company and industry of the job you’re applying for. Showcase your passion to be a part of whatever it is they are doing.

Entry-Level Specific Interview Questions

Questions specific to the nature of entry-level jobs.

1. Why are you interested in this role?

Stating a clear and concise answer here is crucial. The employer is looking to see that you are interested and ready to invest your time into such an opportunity. Be specific about your goals and expectations, discuss how you believe your qualifications are in-line with those required of the position, and be ready to explain why you chose this particular company when applying.

2. What do you know about our company?

Researching the company or organization you are applying to is an integral part of the application process, and this question is an evaluation of whether or not you have already done such an essential task. Prepare to answer questions regarding the origins of the company/organization, their current activities, and their objectives for the future.

Failing to have any knowledge of the company/organization you are applying for will appear to be indicative of a lack of interest or commitment to the application, and to the position itself, whether or not that was your actual intention.

3. How has your internship experience prepared you for the position you’re applying to?

If you don’t have internship experience, feel free to skip this one, as they probably won’t ask it. Otherwise, if your internship experience was directly relevant to the current role you’re applying for (i.e. the same general work), your answer should focus on the specifics of the internship work. Otherwise, it’s wise to focus on any experience you had working on a team, meeting deadlines, and communicating effectively.

4. What classwork has best prepared you for this role?

If you have group project experience, highlight it now. Focus on your role on a team and how you know how to be a team player. If there are classes with specific knowledge that directly prepared you for this role, you’re in luck, that’s another easy answer to this question.

5. How would you assess your writing and communication skills?

This is not a question that mid or senior-level applicants ever get asked. Writing and communication in school is very different from that in the professional world and the employer is checking to make sure you know the difference. If you’ve had experience communicating with full-time employees in your internship, let them know. Otherwise, hammer home the point that you know how to write clearly, concisely, and respectfully.

Academic or Interest-Related Interview Questions

Questions to assess your passion and motivation.

1. Why did you choose the major that you did?

You probably didn’t make a snap decision to major in your major. You likely chose it because you found it interesting, challenging, or thought it would lead to a promising career. The only key to answering this question is knowing why you chose your major and communicating that reasoning clearly. Be honest, even if your reasoning doesn’t seem interesting. It’s better to be honest to yourself and the employer up front than attempt to tell them what you think they want to hear.

2. What were some of your favorite/least favorite classes? Why?

Don’t just give a list of your classes or answer with something generic about how you liked all of them. Be opinionated here and honest. Try and stick to classes you enjoyed because they were stimulating or challenging and avoid saying that you enjoyed a class because it was easy or because you did well in it. The employer wants to see what piques your interest in your measure. They’re evaluating your ability to be genuine and passionate about things.

3. What activities do you do outside of work or school?

Employers like to see that you are engaged in other activities that are either indirectly or directly related to the skills required for the position you are applying for, but it isn’t a necessity. The most important part of this question is to be able to demonstrate that you have a life outside of work, and are invested in and passionate about experiencing new things.

4. How would your past professors or managers describe you?

It’s best to start answering this question with a clarification that you can’t known for certain how they would describe you. Start broad and cover as a whole how you think your previous supervisors or professors have viewed you. This is similar to the strengths and weaknesses question. Then, once you’ve stated broadly how you think you’re viewed, give a few specific examples. It’s best if you can demonstrate through examples (e.g. projects) why a professor or previous manager would say these things.

5. Have you worked any part-time jobs?

Part-time jobs are a major advantage when applying for a job. Over 80% of students have worked a part-time job by the time they graduate. It’s been shown again and again that students with part-time work experience do better in the work place. If you have some part-time job experience, highlight it here. One way to nail this question would be to talk about learning to work on a team, in a professional environment, and communicate with fellow employees. If you don’t have experience, a simple ‘no’ will do here.

Situational Interview Questions

Questions about your past behavior in certain situations to see how you react and learn from previous experiences.

1. Give me an example of a time in which you handled a looming deadline.

How well do you perform under pressure? That’s what the employer is trying to understand. Don’t be afraid to show your weakness here. This, like most situational questions, is trying to get at what you learned or took away from a past situation. Admit your weaknesses and how you’d handle them differently. Then highlight your strengths. Fortunately, you’ve probably had lots of recent experience with tight deadlines in your classes.

2. Give me an example of a time when you worked on a team. What was your role?

Your ability to collaborate and communicate with a team are probably the most important professional soft skills that you can have. Prepare for this by having some specific examples ready from when you worked on a group project. You don’t have to choose a group project where you were the team lead. What’s more important is that you knew your role on a team and that you performed well in your role. If that was a leadership role, great. If not, no worries. If you have examples of how you established or tweaked processes or mediated conflict within the team, use them.

3. Describe a situation where you taught a concept to a co-worker or classmate.

You’ve just spent a lot of time learning from professors and in groups, so you might not think of yourself as a teacher. However, the more knowledge you accumulate, the more likely it is that you’ll be teaching things in the future. It’s best to be specific if you can, and focus on an example from a group project at school or in a previous job. Focus primarily on how you communicated with the person and ensured that they were learning. Don’t focus so much on what you taught them, but rather on how you taught them.

4. Describe a time where you disagreed with a coworker or teammate on a project.

Disagreement is natural. The employer isn’t trying to assess your ability to debate, or even to know whether you’re right or wrong. What they want to know is at the end of the day, can you reach a consensus and move forward. Disagreement is good as long as it doesn’t prevent good work and progress from being made. Being able to resolve differences and move forward is a critical skill that all employers are looking for.

5. Describe a situation in which someone critiqued your work. How did you respond?

You’re (hopefully) going to get lots of feedback in any new job. How you take that feedback and what you do with it will often determine whether or not you keep the job. If you’re not willing to listen to feedback (even if you think it’s wrong) and attempt to address concerns, you likely won’t do well in many professional environments. To answer this question, try and find a situation where someone not only critiqued you, but a situation where you disagreed with that critique. Attempt to demonstrate how you still listened to the critique, voiced your own opinion, and did your best to understand where the critiquer was coming from. Show that you have the capacity to listen and change your behavior.

What’s Next

Now that you’ve got the top 20 questions down, you’re gonna nail that interview and get the job. Well, at least we hope you do! Next, check out some tips we have on evaluating entry-level job fit.

Once you’ve got the job, come check out our tips on starting your entry-level job off right and setting great entry-level job goals.

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as What is an Entry-Level Job? and find answers to common interview questions such as Tell me about yourself.

Using Social Media to Network Online

Did you know social media is an easy and effective way to network with peers and hiring managers? But where should you focus your time online while networking and what’s the process for using online platforms to network? At WayUp’s Internship Hangout on Google+, hiring managers from Nestle Purina and Google share the benefits of networking through social media and how to go about using the online mediums for networking.

Social Media Networking Online Video Transcription


Brook Lashley, Sourcing Strategies Manager, Nestle Purina:

So, many of these logos are going to be very familiar to you. These networks are your opportunity for constant connections. So it’s not necessarily that you meet someone at an event, and you take a business card anymore. You are connected with these people electronically, through technology, and you can keep in touch with them over a time which is extremely beneficial for you.

Companies are becoming more and more active in the social realm. Leverage your social sites for your career networking. It’s huge. Try to engage in these networks as frequently as possible. 88.9% of companies that are using social media. And of that group, over 55% of those use Facebook. So keep in mind, companies are leveraging Facebook for their actual college recruitment and entry-level recruitment.

So it’s very important that you guys think through how you might be able to leverage Facebook, specifically. Twitter is growing leaps and bounds and you’ll see the data off to the right here. 11 Twitter accounts are created every second, so that is a huge, huge, huge size increase. And really about 13% of Twitter users are volunteer demographics, specifically.

LinkedIn is the number one professional social network. It has over a hundred and 35 million users on it, and over two million companies have pages, or profile pages, on LinkedIn.


Jeff Moore, Lead Engineering Recruiter, Google:

I tell a ton of students, “Have you got a LinkedIn account yet?” And they look at me like I’m crazy. And it’s like, you’re meeting people as a freshman, as a senior in high school, what have you, you’re meeting people all the time that you don’t know where they’re gonna be in a year, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years.

Maybe you’ll remember that dude sat next to in an English class and now he’s a CEO of some cool company and he’s looking for a person just like you.


Brook Lashley, Sourcing Strategies Manager, Nestle Purina:

This I cannot stress enough is an excellent resource for students. So, companies like Nestle Purina buy into contracts with LinkedIn where we can run searches around specific skill sets or areas of focus, like your major. And when we have internships and entry-level opportunities of it available, we’ll go out to that database, and we’ll do searches, and we’ll contact students like you letting you guys know that we have these opportunities.


Dana Suhre, Senior Recruitment Specialist, Nestle Purina:

So we recommend joining industry-specific LinkedIn groups. This will allow you to learn and interact with those functional specific individuals. And it’ll really help you be able to follow those discussions on trends that may be happening within the industry and express more specifically open positions that may be happening within your target employers.

There’s a really good chance that within employers that there are alums from your school, from your alma mater, or your current school that you can reach out to, and that’s a great way to get connected connected with the most relevant people within the organization.


Jeff Moore, Lead Engineering Recruiter, Google:

The way the world works now, with you know, social networking and all these sites like this, you’ve got to grab that stuff by the horns. I mean I look back when I was in school. We barely had the internet. And that’s a much different deal than students today. And so taking that opportunity to start building your network from day one is just the biggest thing I could tell you to do.

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as What is an Internship? and find answers to common interview questions such as What’s Your Dream Job?

The Importance of Location in Your Entry-Level Job Search

In general, recent grads that are looking for their first job fall into 3 major categories when it comes to location preferences:

  1. You’re willing to go anywhere. The world is your oyster after all.
  2. You’re open to several locations but not willing to work just anywhere.
  3. You have strict location requirements. Gotta stay close to home, your boo, or whatever it is.

You location preferences are one of the primary determining factors in your search for your first job after college. You may really want that amazing non-profit gig in NYC, but if you really need to stick close to home it’s not going to do you much good to spend time wishing it was local.

Willing to Go Anywhere

If you’re willing to go anywhere, you’ve got plenty of options. In fact, the primary difficulty is in narrowing your location options to those that interest you. Even though you’re open to re-locating, that doesn’t mean that you should be willing to move absolutely anywhere.

The location of your job has a dramatic impact on how enjoyable and satisfying your job is. Particularly your first job. If you really can’t stand winter but move to Chicago to take the job there anyways, you might find yourself resenting the job all winter long. It’s important to prioritize your search efforts to focus on the locations that are most likely to bring you joy first. If you can’t find the right types of positions there, then broaden your search.

When considering the viability of a location you don’t know about, it’s important to do proper and thorough research. Here are some critical factors to consider when learning about a location for the first time:

  1. The weather. How do you deal with winter? Heat?
  2. Red state vs blue state. Knowing the political leaning of your location will help you fit in ideologically.
  3. The average age of the population. You’re young and likely want to make young friends. Don’t move to Palm Springs (sorry Palm Springs).
  4. Travel to and from the location. You’re likely going to have friends and family elsewhere if you re-locate. How easy and expensive is it to get to and from them?
  5. The local activities. What do the local folks do outside of work? Hike? Eat? Dance? Theater?
  6. The commute. You’re likely going to be making the same trip every day. What will it look like?

Open to Some New Locations

If you fall under this umbrella, congrats, you’re well on your way to an easier job search process. You don’t have too many options nor do you have too few. The trick is going to be quickly figuring out whether or not the location requirements you have align with your job interests. For example, if you really want to get into theater as a performer and eventually make it to Broadway, you’re probably not going to find the best opportunities in a small rural community.

Once you know the several locations you’re targeting, head over to some major job search sites like WayUp
to run a search for jobs in a particular location. Then sign up for job alerts by email for that location. You should start getting notified by email when new jobs pop up in your desired location. This way you don’t have to spend time constantly running the same job searches on multiple sites.

It’s also imperative to weigh the relative attractiveness of the locations you’re considering. For example, say that you know that you want to be on the west coast in a city. You’re attracted to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. It’s important to research each city and prioritize them. The stricter you can be about your preferences in every dimension of your job search, the smoother your search will be.

Strict Location Requirements

Recent grads with strict job location requirements often either have it fairly easy or really tough. If you’re looking for a theater job and you have to be in NYC, then there’s already great alignment between your interests and your required location. However, if you’re looking for a theater job and you don’t want to go far from your home in Fargo, you likely have a major uphill battle.

When looking for entry-level employment in a single location there are several specific tools that can help you right off the bat. First, head over to major job search sites like WayUp to search for jobs and create job alerts by email for that location. This way, you see every job that pops up in that location. Ideally, you set your filters for entry-level jobs only so you don’t have to comb through endless part-time and senior-level roles. Second, leverage the career resources available in that location. If you’re looking in the same city as where you attended college, head on over to the career center.

Career centers often partner with local businesses looking for great entry-level talent.
Otherwise, check out the city’s official website. There will often be lots of helpful advice on gaining employment in that particular location.

Location is critical when searching for entry-level jobs. Make sure you don’t underestimate just how impactful the right location can be on achieving success in your first job after college. We’ve got other great tips to
help you get started on your entry-level job search and land an entry-level job without any experience.

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as What is an Entry-Level Job? and find answers to common interview questions such as Tell me about yourself.

How to Get A Great Letter of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation can make or break your ability to get hired. Even if your qualifications are excellent, if your referrals are non existent or negative your chances of finding employment are slim. That said, there are several things you can do to help insure that good references follow your employment trail, and are accessible to potential employers.

1.Identify the right references

If you have no work history or if you are asked for personal references, do not use family or peer group friends. If you feel that one of your parent’s friends knows you well you might consider using them.  Teachers, councilors, TAs and coaches could make strong personal references. But, don’t forget to ask them first.

2. Always ask permission of the person you hope to use as a reference.Never just assume they will say yes.

They may feel uncomfortable talking about you for reasons you may not even guess at. Some companies even have policies that prohibit their employees from saying anything but a confirmation of your employment and the dates of your employment.

3. Help them out.

You may want to list some skills, accomplishments or character traits that you think would apply and send the list to your references for their use. Also include the dates of your employment. Sometimes, people can be busy or distracted or forgetful and it is helpful for them to have a list in front of them when they write or talk about you. If they disagree with something you have put on the list, they can always leave it out.

4. If possible, obtain a letter of recommendation before you leave your internship or job.

You can ask for the referral during the all important exit interview or anytime before you leave.  What you don’t want is for your boss to move on from the company and disappear into the mist at some later date without a way for you to contact them.

5. Conduct an exit interview.

(See the section on how to conduct your exit). The exit interview will be a good opportunity to go over the company’s expectations and how they were met or exceeded by your accomplishments. You, also, will have refreshed their memory about how wonderful you are so they can say some very nice things about you.

6. Don’t burn any bridges upon leaving.

If you want to leave recommendations for change then do so carefully and with tact. Limit your discussion to issues that might make the next intern’s experience even better. Never, ever complain about any individual or incident, and make sure that you make any suggestions positive in tone and content.

7. You might consider having your boss’s recommendations posted on a professional networking site or on Facebook.

Such a site allows you have the references for public view for all of posterity. If you don’t like what someone says about you, you can simply erase it.

8. You do not need to say “references available upon request” on your resume or cover letter.

Employers know they can ask for them. If the references are available on a professional network, however, you could mention that in your cover letter and supply the specific link to your specific reference page.

9. Keep in touch.

If you worked for a company that refuses to give a reference because it is against company policy, do not despair. It is often possible to contact an employee after they have left the company and get a reference then.  Make sure you keep up with your boss or colleagues so you know where and when to reach them.

10. Don’t ask for references from someone who may give you a negative review.

A negative review from a reference can look really bad. This is someone you have hand selected as able to attest to your strong characteristics as a worker and a person. Make sure your references are coming from someone you can trust, who has openly commended you in the past, and ideally someone who has willingly offered to be a reference

11. Keep a list of five references handy so they can be quickly and easily emailed to a prospective employer.

Most interviewers want a list of three but you don’t want anything held up if a reference is out of town or for some reason is unreachable. Include in the list:

  1. Their name
  2. Their position (and current position)
  3. The company  (and their current company, if they have left)
  4. Their professional relationship to you (ex. The person you reported to.)
  5. Their contact information…email and phone

Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as 6 Do’s and Don’ts of Video Interviews and find answers to common interview questions such as Tell Me About Yourself.